Comeuppance
by Larabeelady
Summary: A short follow-up to "A Sentinel by Blair Sandburg." Has spoilers for that episode as well as "Murder 101."


COMEUPPANCE

By Larabeelady

**Disclaimer:** The characters and premise of the Sentinel belong to Petfly, UPN and Paramount. No copyright infringement is intended. The boys will be returned unharmed. Eventually

This was originally posted at Cascade Library under my other name and is being re-posted here.

This is a follow-up to "The Sentinel by Blair Sandburg" and contains spoilers for that episode and also for the episode "Murder 101."

/

Chancellor Katherine Edwards had just sat down in her comfortable executive chair when her phone rang.

"Chancellor," her secretary said, "Mr. Philpot is on the phone. He says it's important."

"Thank you, Diane. Put him through." She waited for the click as Diane connected the call. "Oliver, good morning. What can I do for you?"

"Katherine," the gruff voice matched the serious businessman that headed Rainier University's Board of Regents. "A situation has arisen. We've called an emergency meeting of the board."

The chancellor frowned. "Okay. When?"

"Now. We're already gathered in the conference room. Get in here." He hung up abruptly. Something bad must have happened, that much was evident. She didn't like the fact that she had no idea what that something was. She took pride in being aware of anything that concerned her university. She stood up, checking her appearance in the small mirror on the wall, making sure that her makeup and hair were flawless. Smoothing down her skirt, she walked out and let Diane know where she was headed.

She walked quickly upstairs to the administrative conference room. The other board members, most of them alumni and some of Cascade's most prominent citizens, were already seated. Also present were Professor Whitley and Michael Langston, the University's lawyer. His presence and the somber expressions on the faces of the board members made her stomach drop.

She pasted a smile on her face and sat down in her customary spot. "Good morning, everyone." Pouring herself a cup of coffee from the carafe on the table, she tried to cover her sudden bout of nerves by adding cream and sugar. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Oliver Philpot. "So, you said a situation had arisen. What is happening?"

Michael Langston stood up, shuffling several papers in front of him. "Yesterday afternoon, I received a letter from attorney Peter Hawthorne. The letter was informing us of his client's intent to sue the university."

"What?" Katherine's mouth dropped open in shock. She'd been expecting something bad, but not this. "Who would sue the university? We don't have any money. Who is he representing?"

"He represents Detective James Ellison."

Her mouth tightened as she remembered the man in question. Not to mention his friend, Blair Sandburg. That was one memory she could have just as soon done without. "What exactly are _Detective_ Ellison's grounds?" she asked, making his title sound like a curse.

"The letter claims that the university's actions regarding Blair Sandburg's dissertation led to a media frenzy. That commotion allowed a suspected assassin to escape capture. That suspect shot two members of the Major Crimes unit and later infiltrated the police department building. The last incident ended in an attack where several additional officers were shot, including Detective Ellison."

"And he's trying to blame the university for this? He's crazy. He should be blaming the media for interfering in an investigation."

"Nevertheless, Chancellor," Judge Felicia Gaines interjected, "the fact remains that there are some…questions about whether proper procedures were followed in regards to Mr. Sandburg's dissertation."

"True," Benjamin Boylston, head of Boylston Pharmaceuticals said. "My son, Robert, came to me not long after Mr. Sandburg was dismissed. He had grave concerns about how his own dissertation might be handled."

"What do mean?" Katherine said.

"Katherine," Oliver said, "There are many students who were very upset at what happened to Mr. Sandburg. Rumors circulated that he had never officially submitted his dissertation to this university. There were also questions raised about members of our faculty conspiring with the publicist, Sid Graham, into forcing Mr. Sandburg into that last press conference." Katherine swallowed, not meeting Oliver's eyes. "Now, I'm not the type to accept the word of upset students without trying to find out the facts. So I asked Mr. Langston to investigate these rumors. Mr. Langston."

"Thank you, Mr. Philpot. As most of you know, Mr. Sandburg was a member of the Anthropology department. Per university procedures, the department head would have convened the committee to judge the dissertation. I think everyone here knows Professor Whitley, the Anthropology department head." He indicated the Professor sitting next to him. "I asked Professor Whitley to join us here today."

"Ladies and gentlemen." The professor stood up to address the members seated around the table. "The rumors that you heard, Mr. Philpot, were correct. Mr. Sandburg never submitted his dissertation for review. I also know that Mr. Graham never had the man's permission to release any portion of his dissertation. I know this because Mr. Graham called me to try and convince Mr. Sandburg to let him publish. I declined, then talked to Blair. He said that Sid Graham had called him and that he personally told Mr. Graham that the paper was not for sale, and to destroy any copies he had." He resumed his seat.

Mr. Langston consulted his notes. "I talked to a friend of mine in New York. He works in the publishing industry, though not for the same company as Mr. Graham. He said that Sid Graham was fired by the publishing company right after he returned to New York from Cascade. I also found out that the publishing company just settled out of court with Detective Ellison and several other members of the police department for a total of ten million dollars." Several members of the board drew sharp breaths at the amount.

"So," Katherine said, "what position is the university going to take in regards to this lawsuit?"

"Actually, Katherine, there is a way to stop the lawsuit." Mr. Philpot said.

"Oh?" She didn't understand why everyone was here talking about it if there was a way to stop it.

"Detective Ellison would agree to drop the suit, if certain conditions are met."

The intense look he gave her made her shudder. "What…" she croaked then cleared her throat. "What conditions?"

"First off, he wants a formal letter of apology from this university to Mr. Sandburg." When Katherine started to object, he threw her an angry look that made her clamp her mouth shut. He continued. "Second, he wants Mr. Sandburg to have an opportunity to submit a dissertation of his choosing, to be reviewed as university procedures dictate."

Katherine could feel her face flush in anger, but she wisely kept her mouth shut. However, Oliver's next statement caught her totally off guard.

"His final condition is the removal of Chancellor Katherine Edwards."

She jumped to her feet, her mouth outrunning her brain. "What? You can't be serious! How dare he try to blackmail this university! Who does he think he is?"

"Calm yourself, Katherine." Oliver said. "You're not doing your position any good with this outburst."

"My position?" Katherine slumped back into her seat. "You can't be seriously considering bowing to this man's demands!"

"None of his demands are unreasonable, Katherine, especially in light of your actions in regards to this matter," Oliver stated.

"Frankly, Chancellor Edwards," Judge Gaines said, "the board has had serious questions about your policies ever since the issue with Brad Ventriss." 

"Which also had to do with Mr. Sandburg, if I'm not mistaken," one of the other members of the board said.

"Several issues have been brought to our attention regarding your actions, Chancellor. Some of those actions are having detrimental effects on the students and faculty of this university. Although politics are always a part of university life, it seems that sometimes you forget that this is an institution of learning. And that everyone, whether their family has money or not, has the right to an education. And fair treatment," Mr. Boylston said. "The board has discussed these issues at length, especially in light of the letter from Detective Ellison's lawyer."

"And?" Katherine asked harshly.

Oliver Philpot pulled out a handkerchief and cleaned off his glasses. "Katherine, maybe it's time you think about retiring."

Katherine looked around the table at the other members of the board, but didn't see any sympathetic expressions. All she saw was the end of her career. "And if I'm not ready for 'retirement'?"

"The detective's condition only calls for your removal. It doesn't specify how that removal is accomplished. By offering you a chance to retire, we were hoping to save you the disgrace of being fired and save the university more publicity that it doesn't need. But if that's the way you want this to happen, the board will accommodate you." He slipped his glasses back onto his nose.

Katherine stood up, taking a deep breath and meeting Oliver's gaze. "That won't be necessary. I'll take retirement. I'll have my desk cleared out by the end of the week." Without a backward glance, she walked out of the room. 


End file.
